Sleep and mental health are strictly interconnected. Sleep alterations are common to different psychopathologies, specifically anxiety and depression disorders, and they need specific clinical attention. Early detection of sleep alterations is of fundamental importance to start an effective individualized treatment plan, in order to prevent the negative impact of sleep alternations on patient’s health and functioning.
The present article aims at offering theoretical and clinical guidelines for the identification of sleep alterations in psychotherapy. We propose a clinical interview useful to evaluate insomnia disorder and sleep health’s status. In the article we expose theoretical underpinning which guide the clinical interview, including: the detection of insomnia disorder, the identification of sleep health’s status, the importance of differential diagnosis and of psychopathological evaluation.
The proposed clinical interview is well suited for the evaluation of sleep in patients presenting to clinical attention either for a sleep disorder or for a different symptomatology.
Key words: clinical interview, insomnia disorder, sleep health, diagnostic assessment
DOI: 10.36131/COGNCL20230105